


Red Heaven

by Swanqueeniest



Category: Incredibles (Pixar Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Bisexual Character, Bisexual Female Character, Bisexual Helen "Elastigirl" Parr, F/F, F/M, Family, Hevelyn - Freeform, Lesbian Character, Nonbinary Character, f/f - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-03
Updated: 2020-03-02
Packaged: 2020-06-03 11:46:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19463335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Swanqueeniest/pseuds/Swanqueeniest
Summary: Helen Parr has worked for almost 40 years to keep her home life and her past as Elastigirl very separated. But nothing ever stays the same. As her relationship with her husband shifts familiar urges are uncovered. While saving the city and ending one relationship, a new future emerges. And this one refuses to be compartmentalized.





	1. Past Tense

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone! I'm excited to bring you a new project! Please leave comments and reviews!
> 
> *Please expect minor changes in the next several days*

A ghostly figure sat hunched low over a dark-chromed motorcycle, fingers flexing on the handle bars. One red combat boot planted on the ground for balance, and a similarly gloved hand taking a drag off a slender cigarette. The cycle beneath the figure was a look-alike to the Indian Scout motorcycles being used in the war, but lacked the tank insignia typical of a genuine Indian. Further examination would reveal that this was not a factory made cycle at all, with the dark frame modified to be extra-slim and the handlebars hinged to fold down the middle. The red and black studded accents and blood red tail lights formed the well known insignia of the superheroine Elastigirl. 

Said superheroine perked at the sound of the police scanner, wired into her motorbike helmet, announcing a potential break in at the zoo. 

The dispatcher responded to the reporting officer, “What kind of backup you need, Chief?”

There was a flurry of cracking and shouting from the other end, “ah geez, everything we got. It’s that ice loon again. Now he’s trying to break into the zoo, and we can’t even get close!” 

“Boreas.” Elastigirl muttered as she slipped her riding goggles over a bright red mask. 

As Elastigirl fired up the engine, soothing purr extending into her chest, she took off into the daylight. If she took the causeway, she could be in down town in under five minutes. Hopefully, the police and fire department would beat her there. 

Once on the road, she thought over the last few attacks by Boreas: an Oceanworld, the headquarters of a whaling company, and a government medical testing center. She pursed her lips. Some of the places that Boreas vandalized deserved to be shut down, in a civil and law abiding manner. Part of her understood that the cogs of change moved very slowly, especially where the government or large corporations were involved. It was maddening to see the treatment of animals in all of these facilities. Unfortunately Boreas had no problem killing the employees or wreaking havoc on nearby neighborhoods. No matter how they justified the cause, Boreas couldn’t be allowed to hurt innocent people. 

As she jumped the baracage of the highway and landed on a side street, Elastigirl could hear the sound of dozens of sirens coming from downtown. She pushed the speed of her bike closer to it’s limit. It was likely that if the situation got any more out of hand, the police themselves would become part of the problem as they tried to take out the supervillain. 

She parked in an ally and used her elastic limbs to sling herself onto a nearby rooftop, and then to the top of a radio tower, perching there with her helmet on. Having fought Boreas in the past, she knew it was a good idea to have some extra protection for her head. It was the one part of her that didn’t bounce back from an impact quite the same way. There were about ten police cars parked outside the front entrance of the zoo, and a few firetrucks off in the distance racing toward them. She could see from this angle that there were still families shuttered inside the zoo, barracaded in by the police line. Elastigirl rolled her eyes. This was just the sort of situation where the safety of the public should come before the apprehension of the villian. They all knew from experience that Boreas had very little interest in civilians other than as obstacles to their goals. 

The radio in her helmet crackled again, “Units one and two, move to assist civilians in safe exit! I don’t want to see a single finger near their trigger! Let's move, people!”

Elastigirl nodded to herself, happy that at least someone on the department had a few brain cells to rub together. However, the extra attention on the front entrance, as well as the few cars parked near the back, left the eastern loading dock with zero supervision. Okay so maybe the police only had ONE collective brain cell. 

Stretching into a position that mimicked a diver on the starting block, and with one large breath, Elastigirl launched herself into the air toward the loading dock. It further concerned her that there was no crackle in her ear to indicate that the police had seen a full grown woman falling through the sky toward the civilian zone. It only took her a moment to realize that, even with her agility, she was going to land a little short of her target zone. The next second she was tucking and rolling to land outside the Rainforest Jungle exhibit. ‘I need to hit the gym a little harder next week’, buzzed through her mind. Only a few hundred feet off, and far less discrete. Boreas would know she was coming. It couldn’t be helped now. 

Elastigirl lengthed her legs and leapt toward the sound of screaming and a whooshing that she recognized as Boreas’ ice powers. Once she got closer, she swept the area for civilians, but the police seemed to finally have done their jobs. That meant she only had a few minutes before they came bursting in to “save” the day. 

Boreas was hovering over the arctic exhibits on a pillar of cold wind, the summer grass below twinkling with unseasonable frost. 

“Elastigirl! Here to thwart me?”

Elastigirl shrugged and perched on the top of a fake rock. This was a familiar song and dance. The villain mocked, Elastigirl engaged to distract them. Below in the exhibit, scrawny polar bears covered in their filth covered false dens. The water of their enclosure was green with algae, and each bear looked as though it hadn’t eaten properly in...ever. So this was the injustice that Boreas was here to right. 

“It seems you’re back from the south pole. I didn’t peg you as a snow bird,” Elastigirl used the few moments of distraction to decipher exactly what Boreas’ end goal was here. Unlike the OceanWorld break in, there were no crews with shipping containers. In fact, she didn’t see any other people around at all, super or otherwise. 

Boreas laughed, their white head of closely-cropped hair falling back and showering the ground below with snow. Thier outfit was really very simple, a plain pair dark pants, a black long sleeve shirt, and a bright white furry cape. Elastigirl had once or twice thought she saw an eye blinking at her from the depths of the cape. If it wasn’t for the startlingly blue eys, the unseasonably warm outfit, and the fact that they were hovering 20ft off the ground, Boreas would cut a fashionably androgynous picture. 

“Trying to figure out the plan, Elastigirl? Honestly I’m surprised that you try so valiantly to stop me. You seem like an intelligent and eco-conscious individual.” Boreas smilled, but their eyes seemed open a little too wide, and their canines filed into superhumanly long points. “But I am an old god, and I cannot be contained.”

Boreas’ eyes dilated with glee, “....and neither can they.”

Elastigirl lurched forward to stop Boreas’ hands, but it was a moment too late. The wind whipped ice bullets at the glass of all the enclosures, and they were suddenly free. For a moment, elastigirl had a hold on Boreas’ arm, but one menacing look and ice crept up her fingers and up her arm. Before her fingers could stop working altogether, or worse fall off, she yanked her arm back. The motion threw her off balance and Elastigirl slipped into the enclosure below. 

The bears remained motionless in their cave. There appeared to be three full-grown adults in the tiny space. They hadn’t yet processed what the lack of glass meant, but the splash of an unknown object hitting the water, and the slap of at least on limb hitting the rock, was enough to draw them out to see what all the commotion was. Elastigirl gasped as she surfaced and pulled her body back to its natural state, wincing at her bruised leg and still stiff arm. This was why she left the helmet on around Boreas.

Boreas gracefully landed on the walkway, opening their arms and sending a visible pulse of energy into the air. Once it washed over Elastigirl, she could feel Boreas’ intent in her mind. Trapped. Lost. Hurt. Free. Run. Wild. Fight. ATTACK! It felt as if someone was punching her brain at a frequency only animals should hear. She clutched her head as the pulses kept coming and the animals around her went ballistic. A few pens over, a herd of reindeer launched themselves through their fence and began a stampede. Somewhere, a large cat yowled. The polar bears stood up and roared, advancing on the front of their enclosure and closer to where Elastifgirl lay in the water. As the pulses ended, she just managed to stretch out an arm and pull herself out of the path of their rampage and up beyond their reach. Interest lost, the huge bears charged off toward the edges of the park and toward the city. Boreas seemed drained, but rose back into the sky to follow and supervise the havoc that their escapee’s were to wreck. 

~*~

Elastigirl caught up to the wreckage just as they crashed through the front gates. Boreas loved to make a public scene and the television cameras focused on the front entrance were the perfect opportunity. As the police and the media were distracted by Boreas’ no-doubt self righteous monologue, Elastigirl wasted no time in protecting the city. As she swung over the streets of Municiberg, her mind worked in double time. The reindeer and other herd animals could be corralled into a nearby baseball stadium. The smaller animals would be a pest, but were unlikely to cause anyone serious injury. The bears, wolves, and whatever lare cat had been let loose would be the largest threats. 

Swinging by a payphone and ripping her helmet off, Elastigirl called a number that she reserved for emergencies. 

“Gale? It’s Helen. I need some help down here.”

There was a tinkling laugh from the other end, “What’s the matter, Stretch? Wanted to see me so bad on my day off that you let loose the snow animals?”

The tips of Helen's ears turned the same color as her mask, “So you’ve been watching the news. Can you get the herd animals into the Municiberg Manta’s stadium? I’m not worried about the little-er animals.” 

“I’m on my way.” The phone clicked and Elastigirl let out a sigh. Stratogale would be able to communicate with the local birds, which in turn might be able to help calm down the stampeding deer and elk. 

The young super bent down to re-tie her bootlaces. It was going to be a long afternoon. As she raced toward the alley where her bike was parked, she put her helmet back on a tuned back into the police radio. 

“There are polar bears down on main street. We tried to clear the area but theres a deadlock from 5th to Bayside --- Stratogale spotted in the west side district. Gathering up the deer toward the stadium. Units 7, 8 and 11 assist Stratogale---...”

Elastigirl took off on her bike headed downtown. Soon she had the polar bears locked in a mechanics garage with animal control ready to take them out with sleeping darts. A few police officers thanked her, and told her that there was some sort of large cat in Municiberg Public Park. So far it hadn’t hurt anybody, but one officer sheepishly admitted that it had been shot in the leg. 

Elastigirl raced over to the park, leaving her bike parked in the grass. Several animal control officers were huddled together next to their van. 

“What’s going on here, gentlemen?” 

“Elastigirl! There's a huge snow leopard in there, and it’s mad as the dickens. We can't get close enough to get a clear shot. There might be some people back there, but we can’t even get back there to tell!”

Elastigirl frowned. “I’ll try to---,” A terrified scream from in the park cut her off. “That sounded like a kid.”

She didn’t waste any more time. Using her arms, she swung over the tops of the trees and toward the direction the scream came from. In a clearing, two young kids were in a gazebo, their parents some distance away screaming for them to run. At first she didn’t see the threat, but as she got closer sh could see a large tail swishing from the ceiling. The snow leopard was in the rafters above the kids heads. The boy was on the ground screaming his fool head off, and his sister was trying to pull him away by the arm. 

“Come on, Win! If you just lay there crying we won’t get away!” 

The boy looked to be around 10, and the girl closer to 6 or 7. Elastigirl braced herself on the lawn, unnoticed by the kids, and stretched her arms out to near their maximum lengths. She grabbed the large cat by the tail and gave the strongest yank she could manage.

The huge cat yowled and dropped to the floor, turning its huge gold eyes on the super. She backed up as it advanced on her, and away from the kids. Elastigirl gave it a few punches to keep it interested in her, before turning tail and running as fast as she could toward where the animal control personnel were located. 

She came sprinting out of the tree line at top speed, “SHOOT IT SHOOT IT!” 

They got several darts in the animal, and the super stopped to catch her breath for a moment before returning to the clearing. She had to make sure those kids were okay and that they got back to their parents safely. 

~*~

“---and we can never thank you enough, Elastigirl!”

The kids’ parents had been thanking her in several different ways for the past few minutes, but it was the young girl who held the supers’ attention. While the boy, Winston, had attached himself to Elastigirl's side and not let go, the girl looked sullen. The father seemed to catch where the young woman's glance, and he frowned at his daughter. 

“Evelyn? Why don’t you thank the nice super hero for saving you?”

The young girls blue eyes flashed up into Elastigirls, “I could have saved us, if Winston wasn’t such a big cry baby.” 

“Evelyn!” the mother gasped in shock at her daughters tone. 

The young superhero just laughed, and finally removed her helmet to reveal her red hair. It was shaved closely on one side, but fell to her shoulder on the other. She knelt on one knee, and the young girl crossed her arms and put her bottom lip out in a pout. 

“I have no doubt that you could have. But if you ever need help, I’m going to be here. So the next time you run into a really mad arctic cat, all you need to do is let me know.” 

Elastigirl winked from behind her mask, and the little girl’s cheeks pinked. 

“Snow leopards are from Asia…” she mumbled. 

Elastigirl just chuckled and stood up. “Please stay safe, and get checked out at the hospital if you have any injuries at all.” 

The ring of their thanks followed her as she lept to check in with Gale and the police. She had never before considered having kids, but something about the girls big blue eyes struck a chord in her heart. Maybe Gale wouldn’t be opposed to finally settling down. There were plenty of super kids, monitored by the government of course, that lived in foster care. Maybe the two of them could adopt. 

In time she would forget the names and details of that day. It was inevitable that the lives she saved that the bizarre situation in her time as a hero would blend together. But she could never forget those baby blue eyes. She wouldn’t see them again for almost 20 years.


	2. Iron Ocean

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you for your support of the first chapter! I don't see that many members of this particular fandom, so it's so nice to receive comments! Please read and review, and hopefully the next chapter will be along relatively soon.

Helen Parr sat on a pool chair next to her husband. The safari themed motel certainly wasn't the worst place she’d spent the night, but the Super had gotten used to the comforts of suburban life. Her days of shitty apartments above a motorcycle shop felt like they belonged to someone else. 

Their fight at the dinner table about the Superhero ban had carried outside and away from their three kids. 

“--I just feel like the law has let us down! How many more years of hiding, Helen? Until Jack-Jack’s kids are our age?” Bob was pacing angrily along the edge of the pool, but Helen hardly had the energy to fight about it any more. She pinched the bridge of her nose as she felt a migraine coming on. 

“We can't keep putting this family in harm's way just because you’re bitter that you can’t relive your glory days, Bob,” she didn’t have to look up to know his face was turning red, “And if SOMEONE had had a little more respect for the law ‘back in the day’ then MAYBE Superheroes would still be legal!”

Bob was livid, “There you go again! You can’t blame all the problems in the world on me! I care about this family too!” 

“But not enough to be faithful?” Helen finally looked up at him, and his face fell, and she regretted the comment immediately. 

Bob sat heavily on the pool chair beside her, the cheap metal bars whining under the strain of his Super-dense bulk. 

“I’m sorry Helen. You know I am.” 

Helen sighed. The two of them had talked about this more than a dozen times already. “I know you are. I’m sorry, that was cruel of me. I’m not angry anymore. Lashing out at you like that doesn’t help anything. You know I love you. And I know you love me.”

Bob nodded, and Helen realized that this man was often more patient than she gave him credit for. She grimaced,”...But we aren’t right for each other. I’m not sure we ever were.” 

She had come to terms with this fact, but admitting it still felt like gravel between her teeth. A little voice inside her whispered that she had failed. That is she had been a better wife or a better person then she and Robert could have been happy together forever. 

Bob smirked, oblivious to the pained look in his wife’s eyes, “You’re my best friend, Honey. And all things considered, I’m happy that I get to raise this family with you. It was the best decision I ever made.” He twisted the wedding band on his finger, “You know that Mirage and I never DID anything, right?”

Helen chuckled, the tension around her lungs finally loosening, “I know. But the heart wants what it wants. I respect you for telling me before anything came of it.” 

“Are you sure you don’t want to get a divorce? I don’t want ...seeing ... the two of us...you know, together, to hurt you.”

The redhead pulled in a shaky breath and ran her hand through her short bob. She had thought about that a lot in the past few days. She still loved Bob, she thought. And maybe she was even still IN love with him, but with every passing moment she was less sure. Every boyish grin, every comforting hand on her shoulder, was comfortable. A worn recliner in the corner of the living room, or a hammer hanging faithfully on the garage wall. A lot of people would call that love. For a lot of people, that would be enough. But Helen wasn’t sure that had ever been enough for her. 

_‘Selfish bitch,’_ the voice in her head whispered. 

But this wasn’t about just her. They had kids to consider, and she knew that Bob loved them just as much as she did. She wanted to give them stability, at least until they were all old enough to understand a separation. Besides, she was Elastigirl. She was a mature and intelligent woman. She could work through her feelings in a mature and intelligent way. 

“I don’t need a divorce. We can work this out together. Seeing Mirage will be ...painful. For a while. But I’m sure that we can do this together. For the sake of our family.”

The two stared into the pool for a while, and Helen could practically hear the gears in Bob’s head turning. At some point tonight he would step out into the parking lot and make a phone call to a woman who was, likely, waiting anxiously for his call. She could practically see the silver head of her husband’s lover waiting next to the phone as she often had, backlit by a single lamp and a glass of wine at her side. Helen’s thoughts turned to Violet’s earlier question, how much longer in the motel?

“What are we going to do?”

Bob slumped his shoulders even further, “I don’t know.” 

The answer to that question would come that very night, on the wings of an old friend with a proposition. 

~*~

The DevTech building was a modern monument, with white marble surfaces and walls that towered. Winston Deavor himself seemed a part of this world, with his strong chin and cheeks that were completely smooth even at this late hour. When Helen shook his hand, a waft of aftershave tickled her nose, but not unpleasantly. His hands were almost as soft as his face looked, and Helen was glad that she was wearing gloves. Her own middle-class fingertips were calloused from years washing dishes by hand, and underneath them the scars and blisters of a life lived on the back of a motorbike. There was a kind of boyish glee to his every word, and an infectious bounce in his step that pulsed life and warmth into the imposing room. 

Despite herself, Helen like Winston immediately. 

He certainly knew the right things to say to get Bob on his side. As the two of them geeked out over old Superhero tunes and catch phrases, she rolled her eyes and thought back to the conversation from earlier. Mr. Incredible really couldn’t let go of the past. Bob loved the attention, and it was nice to see that their potential ally was as energetic about Supers as Bob was himself. But when a much shorter figure in a hat burst through the door, Helen’s attention was completely captivated. 

As the figure started shedding layers, and dropping rolls of official documents all over the floor in the process, Helen chuckled to herself. Before the Superheroine could ask about this new woman, Winston introduced her as his sister Evelyn Deavor. 

Evelyn clearly uncomfortable, but from Winstons expression and body language, this was completely normal for his sister. Where Evelyn's shoulders were tense and her eyes nervous, Winston was relaxed on the heels of his feet with an easy smirk. The two looked so unalike that it was almost comical. Where Winstons features blended effortlessly with his lavish surroundings, Evelyn looked as though she had just stepped out of a downtown coffee house. Or maybe a very gay piano bar. While her jaw had a hint of squareness to it, her features were overall more round and soft than her brothers. Evelyn's button nose and tired eyes were juxtaposed next to her brothers patrician features. Had it not been for their hair color, at first glance the two would be mistaken for complete strangers. 

The fact that Winston was the spitting image of their father, while Evelyn hardly resembled him, was not lost on the Superheroine. Helen thought to herself that the siblings really did look nothing alike, and Evelyn and her father, even less so. Winston’s explantation of their parents death, and his subsequent passion for super-restoration worldwide, it was even more clear that the two Deavors were very different. As her brother monologued about the grandeur of the old days, it was clear that Evelyn did not feel the same passion. Helen catalogued this information away for later. 

As the siblings were introducing the idea of Super reactivation, Helen could feel Bob thrumming with increasing energy beside her. Just as she could feel the addictive enthusiasm of Winston Deavor rising to meet it. But it was the feeling on the back of her neck that she couldn’t ignore. When Evelyn spoke up, Helen turned and recognized it as the sultry gaze of the younger woman. Evelyn's steely blue eyes jumped all over the hero;s face as she spoke; her eyes, her nose, and finally settled on Helen’s lips. The Superheroine blushed lightly, but convinced herself that it was only the mutual admiration of a woman in a position of power. As she turned back to the presentation, the Super thought it interesting that even with the two men filling the room with overpowering energy, it was still Evelyn's eyes on her that she responded to the most. The elastic woman willed the baby hairs and goosebumps along her arms and neck to flatten, and she unconsciously crossed her legs. 

Yes, she would have to get to know the Deavor woman better, especially if they were going to work together. 

~*~

When all was said and done, she did it partly for herself too. Bob had joked that she would take Winston Deavor up on his offer to be the face of the Super Revolution for his sake, and she laughed it off. But Bob had a point. She believed that the only way for Supers, and her kids, to walk safe again would be if the laws were changed. The Deavor twins had made a convincing argument that this was the best and most safe way for that to happen. Sort of a peaceful protest. 

That’s what Helen told herself. 

The new house and distance from her husband would also make things easier. For everyone. Evelyn had said that missions might take her away for days at a time, and that the two of them would get together soon to discuss some new devices and strategies. Having these meetings at DevTech would give her a legitimate reason to escape from her daily life. The house was huge and beautiful as well, with plenty of room to avoid her husband. Unfortunately there was a lot to do before she could squirrel herself away for a few hours. As they were settling into the house, Bob came looking for her in the yard. 

“Hey, Honey? What are we gonna do about...you know…” Bob dropped his voice to what he must have thought was a whisper, “...the bedroom situation?” 

“Well there’s six bedrooms so I was thinking Dash and Vi upstairs with Jack-Jack down by our--”

Helen stopped suddenly, “.....oh you mean for us.”

He looked sheepish and was playing with the hair at the nape of his neck, but his eye contact was strong, “Yeah. Are we going to tell the kids we’re in separate rooms or should I just...you know...sneak out?”

Helen took a sharp breath. He hadn’t even brought up that they could sleep in the same bed, even for the kids’ sake. This was the first time that they, that SHE, had to make a real decision like this. In the motel, there was only one bed and a pull out couch so necessity kept them close. But Winstons huge house meant that they could really be apart for the first time. That’s what she wanted, right?

Before she could answer, Bob spoke again, “And there's something else. Mirage ...is coming into town for a while. Maybe a long while. I was wondering what level of contact you want her to have with ...the kids and…”

And her. Bob was asking how much she would be in the way of the two seeing each other. It was completely reasonable, she was the one who said she was comfortable with this. 

“Have her stay here.” Helen had blurted it out almost before she had thought it at all. 

“What?! Really?” 

“I mean .. yes. Ask her if she wants to stay here. That way, you and the kids can be close and she can get to know them a little better. It will be easier to explain than why you were sneaking out all the time, since we all know you’re not exactly quiet.” She pushed his shoulder with her own to ensure he knew she was teasing. 

“Okay! We can put her into the bedroom next to Jack-Jacks nursery?”

Helen could almost read his mind. If his room and Mirages’ room were both on the ground floor then they would be close and he wouldn’t wake the kids up at night if he was creeping to meet up with her. That arrangement would also leave Helen in the master bedroom on the other end of the main floor. 

“That sounds great. Just let me know when she's flying in and we can all go pick her up.”

Bob’s face fell. 

“...or maybe you can go pick her up. That would be faster.” 

Bob beamed at her obliviously, “Thank you, Helen! Now let's go check out the rest of this house! DAAAAASH!” 

As the Super ran off, bellowing for his son, Helen lagged behind, thinking about how her husband's lover would be joining them in the huge house her new boss was loaning them. This was bound to get interesting. 

~*~

The garage was even better than Helen had anticipated. Every wall had custom-designed tool cabinets. There was some kind of double hoist to do undercarriage repairs, an integrated diagnostic system, and a number of different tools that Helen couldn’t even name. It had been too many years since she had stepped foot in a grease shop, and even in those days she was working with low end electronics and mismatched wrench sets. 

“A new Elasticycle!” Helen couldn’t believe that Evelyn’s gift was already here.

Bob had followed her to the basement, and he saw the new cycle almost as soon as she did. It perfectly matched the new suit that Winston had commissioned for her. Both items made her wonder if Winston had rush-ordered them, or if he had been just that confident that Elastigirl would accept his proposal. The suit alone was a several thousand dollar investment, before paying off the manufacturer to keep quiet, of course. She didn’t even want to think about how expensive this bike must have been. 

“Elasticycle? I didn't know you had a bike,” Bob was obviously a little jealous, as he had always prided himself on his Incredible-themed ‘super-car’. 

“Hey, I had a mohawk. There's a lot about me you don't know,” Elastigirl kept her voice neutral, but there was bitterness in her heart. Whereas Bob had never stopped drooling over the old days, he had never really bothered to stop and ask her about her past. 

“Yeah, but... A mohawk?”

Elastigirl just smiled to herself, revelling a little in her husband’s jealousy. It was nice to know that she could still have that effect over him in some way. But for a brief moment her mind flitted to Gale, and her smile fell. 

“Ah, you didn't miss anything.” Nothing could be farther from the truth. 

The two superheroes said their goodbyes, and Helen left her husband to take care of their children. She wasn’t sure about this arrangement, but Violet and Jack-Jack would be in school for the majority of the day and Bob was actually rather adept with babies. It had made him a popular person for crowd-pleasing photoshoots in the old days. 

The new bike shot out like a rocket from the garage and into the woods surrounding the house. It jumped to action so fast underneath her that she had to stretch her arms a little to maintain balance. Jumping onto the freeway, muscles she hadn’t used in decades sprang back into action. It was nice to have something more powerful than her own legs underneath her, even if the electric purr wasn’t anywhere near the low growl she had been used to in her original bike. As she booked it across Municiberg toward the airport, she could feel her hair whipping in the wind, and for a moment she missed her old helmet. Maybe she could get Evelyn to make her one. 

Evelyn. There was something about the woman, and her brother too for that matter, that was eerily familiar. Every time she thought of the past, Evelyn seemed to creep into her mind as well. Although she was all but certain she had never seen the short-haired young woman before in her life. Maybe it was deja-vu? 

Soon enough she was pulling into the airport and zipping down the Deavors private airstrip. The guards must have been alerted to her arrival, because no one tried to stop her. Years of living in secrecy made her wonder just how loose-lipped Winston Deavor was about his association with the outlawed Superheroine. 

As a flight attendant took her bike, Winston Deavor sang her theme song, “Here comes Elastigirl! Stretching her--” 

Elastigirl laughed, “No theme songs or I'll turn this bus right around!” 

Secretly, it grated on her nerves that Winston would bring that silly theme song up at a time like this. When Supers were first becoming celebrities rather than feared vigilantes, she cared very little for her public persona. It had been Gale who talked her into pleasing ‘the public eye’. Gale had said that maybe people would respond better to a saviour they could identify and trust. The two had gotten more than a little tipsy on champagne and written that theme song together. Every time she heard it, she could only think of Gale.

_‘No no! It has to be catchy and short, Stretch! Something people will REMEMBER!’_

_Helen giggled and went to tuck her hair behind her ear, only to remember she had shaved it off only a few nights ago. Now there was only the long mohawk, wet and curly from a recent shower._

_‘But ...it won’t be boring, will it?’_

_Gale looked at her from across the couch, long legs tucked under her body. The Super’s dark brown hair was slicked back into a perfect ponytail, but her cheeks were rosy and her plaid shirt had several buttons undone and one seemed to be missing altogether. She was smiling so softly at her that it made Helen blush and look away._

_‘Ya know, for someone who didn’t want to do this, you sure are worried about the quality.’_

_Helen reached her hand up and ran it over the short hair at the base of her neck. Gale always loved to nuzzle the soft skin there, especially when it was freshly shaved, and Helen found herself touching that place more and more to ground herself._

_‘Well I don’t want anyone to think I’m…..I don’t know! Boring! Awful! Less than any one of the guys!’_

_Gale chuckled, ‘They say that I have my head in the clouds, but you’re the one with high aspirations,’ she smirked at Helen in a familiar way, and used her powers to float closerer. She opened her arms and the redheaded Super huffed for a moment before falling into her girlfriend's arms._

_As Helen kissed Gale’s neck, the taller woman sang in her ear, ‘Here comes Elastigirl, stretching her arms. Elastigirl. No one's beyond her reach….’_

Elastigirl shook herself out of her memories as the plane began to take off. She felt someone settle in the seat beside her. 

“Hey. You okay?” 

The Super looked over into the steely blue eyes of Evelyn Deavor. They were so close that Helen could smell a hit of champagne and orange juice on her breath, and maybe even a slight hint of...men’s cologne? Helen realized that she had been wrong initially about the Deavor siblings being entirely different. The two had almost the exact same color of eyes, with Evelyns being a more steely blue-grey and Winstons a shade more aqua. Still, the Super could only tell they were different because Evelyn was so very very close. 

So close that Ealstigirl had to resist the urge to let her eyes wander the younger woman’s face. 

“Your eyes aren’t the same,” Elastigirl blurted out. While the comment was completely out of character for the ever-professional Elastigirl, Evelyn did not seem at all surprised or confused. 

“Yeah,” she shrugged, one shoulder peeking out a little more from her sweater, “They used to be more blue-blue, like Win’s, but I guess they’ve kind of dulled over the years.” 

Evelyn’s pained smile made the Super wonder if this was a comment that the other woman had heard often. Maybe even from her own parents. 

“No. They’re beautiful. Your eyes remind me of the ocean under a full moon.” 

The other woman just looked at Elastigirl in surprise, her mouth slightly agape, “Well ...thank you.” 

The Super just nodded and didn’t say any more, worried that her big mouth might ruin the moment. Both women sat in silence, with Evelyn fidgeting more and more in her seat. 

“You know, I actually met you once before.” 

Elastigirl turned back toward Evelyn in surprise, “You did? When?”

“I was seven or eight, and there was a Supervillain that let out all the animals at the Zoo. You saved me and Winston from a big cat.” 

Elastigirl smiled, “A snow leopard from Asia.”

The younger woman grinned, “Yeah. I was a little shit, wasn’t I?”

They laughed together, and Elastigirl finally made the connection, “That’s where I knew you from! I thought that I had seen you before, but I guess it makes sense that I haven’t seen you since you were a little kid,” she lightly punched Evelyn’s shoulder, “I knew you were young, but I didn’t know I was THAT much older than you!” 

Even though she had said it as a joke, Helen was actually a little concerned about how much younger Evelyn really must be than her. There must have been more than ten years difference between them. The knowledge hurt Helen a little bit, but she didn’t have time to process why that was before Evelyn retorted. 

“Oh Elastigirl, don’t you know age is just a number? I assure you, I’m all grown up.” 

This time it was Helen’s mouth that went dry. 

Unfortunately, or perhaps rather fortunately, Winston noisily plopped down into the chair across from the two of them. He pointed out the window, childish excitement in his eyes, providing a welcome distraction. 

“Look at that! New Urbem! You wanna make a big crime fighting statement, you go where the crime is big!” 

Helen would have to unpack that entire conversation later. 

~*~

After the incident with the hovertrain and an excited call to her husband, Helen lay in her hotel bed thinking about the day. It felt so nice to be back in action. To be needed in ways that she could provide. 

Helen finally fell asleep, but each dream turned into a nightmare. One moment she was watching Gale launch into the air and into a sky full of razor-winged crows. Just as Gale neared the giant flock, the crows morphed into a night sky. Then Gale was Evelyn, and instead of flying, she was falling back to earth, and Helen was trying desperately to catch her. Next she was the one falling, and she could see Violet and Dash beside her as they were crashing toward cold unforgiving water.

She woke up gasping for air. Helen had some version of this dream just about every night, sometimes with Gale and sometimes without, but never before with Evelyn. For some reason, Evelyn’s presence in her nightmares shook her almost as much as her kids’ did. 

The Super reached for the phone on her nightstand, and called the front desk. 

“Front desk, how may I help you?”

Helen bunched the phone cord in her hands, “Hi, I was just wondering how I could call the room my friends are staying in?”

“To call any room, just dial star, one, and then the room number.” 

“Okay, thank you,” she immediately hung up and dialed the room next to hers. 

“Hello?” For the hour of night, Evelyn didn’t sound the least bit sleepy. 

“Evelyn? It’s Elastigirl. Are you asleep?”

From the other end of the line she heard rustling papers and a deep chuckle, “Not in the least. In fact, I finally feel awake for the first time all day.”

“Can I come over? I can’t sleep and I think I just ...I need company.” 

“Of course, Elastigirl. The door’s unlocked.” 

The two women hung up and Helen slipped her robe and mask on before heading next door. She was sure that Evelyn must know her real identity, but she wasn’t quite ready to show the younger woman her face. Somehow it just felt too personal and raw. It was better to keep things professional. The mask helped her feel more in control.

Evelyn was sitting at a small desk, a number of papers and blueprints strewn around her. There seemed to be schematics for another elasticycle, some sort of plane, and a dozen other contraptions that Helen didn’t even recognize the purpose of. Not wanting to snoop, Helen sat down gracefully on the queen sized bed, knees tucked neatly to her side. She noted that the duvet wasn’t even creased, meaning Evelyn hadn’t even sat there to relax or watch tv, let alone sleep. No wonder the woman always looked on the brink of collapse. 

Said woman was turned sideways in her chair, one arm draped lazily over the back, her chin resting atop it. Evelyn was right, she really did look completely alert and awake for the first time since Helen had known her. That also meant that those steely blue eyes were turned on Helen full-force. In the light from the desk lamp, Evelyn’s eyes gleamed with mischief and a dozen other emotions. 

“The mask? Really?”

Helen reached up and rubbed her neck, not making eye contact, “It makes me feel safe.” 

Instead of laughing, as Helen expected, Evelyn just looked thoughtful, “That’s fair. I want you to feel safe. If that means a mask, then so be it.” 

Helen just looked at Evelyn for a long time, before the other woman broke the eye contact. 

“Do you want coffee? I want coffee. I’m gonna order room service. Do you want anything?” 

Helen shook her head no, but when Evelyn ordered her a decaf tea anyway. The gesture made her smile. It was something that Bob never would have thought to do. Warmth blossomed in her chest. Maybe Winston wasn’t the only Deavor she would come to like against her will.

“Stratogale and I used to sit up late like this and talk. She loved coffee. Any kind really.” 

Evelyn sat up a little straighter, “Is that why you couldn’t sleep? Thinking about Stratogale?”

Helen shrugged her shoulders, “One of the reasons. After Stratogale ...died, I went off the deep end for a little while. Stopped going out on patrol. I even sold my original elasticycle.”

The silence stretched on for a few moments. 

“Were you in love with her?”

Helen looked over at Evelyn, shocked that the younger woman would make such a comment. Even now, it was frowned upon for two women to be together, even if it was no longer illegal. For a moment, Helen thought about lying. 

“Yes.” 

Evelyn just shifted in her seat and put her head back down on her arms, “I used to see the two of you on the news when I was young. There was this one time that she put her arm around your waist and it just looked so…..comfortable. I always wanted that.”

Helen took a shaky breath, “Gale was… everything to me. Even when we couldn’t be together anymore, she was still everything to me.” 

“Why couldn’t you be together?” 

“In those days, just about every Super worked for or with the government. We were told that it was our duty to marry other Supers to pass on our powers. That if we didn’t, then superpowers might be lost to humans for good. I didn’t want to leave her. She always said that I could marry Bo-- Mr. Incredible and have kids, and that she and I could be together later. She even came to our wedding. But then ...then she was gone.” 

Evelyn cocked her head to the side like a sad puppy, “You let the government tell you who to have kids with?” 

“It wasn’t that simple! Supers were under a lot of pressure from all sides. Every part of our lives were under scrutiny. Same-sex relationsips were still illegal, and supers on the edge of it. It was safer for both of us to go our separate ways for a while.” 

Helen’s face had begun to turn a little red from indignation and her toes curled into the bed sheets underneath her, “I would rather that we be apart and Gale be safe than try to stay together and get killed.” 

Evelyn didn’t say anything to that. She didn’t have to. Helen could read the pity on her face. Helen had left Gale so that Gale would be safe, one of the hardest choices of her entire life, and Gale had died anyway. It was an awful irony that she had played over and over in her head for almost twenty years. Sometimes she even wondered if Gale was meant to be the great love of her life. 

The redheaded woman felt exhaustion come over her in one great wave. She leaned her head back against the headboard. There was a light knock at the door and Evelyn rose to answer it. As the Deavor sister passed, Helen stretched out and grabbed her hand. 

“I’m sorry. It’s all just a little raw. I’ve never really talked to anyone about all this except a therapist.” 

Evelyn entwined their fingers for a moment and kissed the top of Helen’s hand, “You don’t need to apologize for anything. I understand the loss of a loved one. Thank you for trusting me.”

She let go after a moment and finally answered the door, where a sleepy looking bellhop handed her a covered tray with their hot beverages inside. 

Evelyn passed the little teacup over to Helen, who sipped it delicately. As the warmth spread through her body, Helen felt more tired than ever. Evelyn chuckled and came to stand next to the bed. 

“Why don’t you lay your head down and relax for a moment? I’ll wake you in a little while.”

Helen smiled drowsily and laid her head down on one of the many pillows, wrapping one arm underneath it to get more comfortable. As she did so, her mask slipped off and lay beside her on the comforter. 

Evelyn stood over the unmasked hero for several moments smiling softly and examining the gentle slopes and curves of her face. A thought must have crossed her mind because her forehead soon wrinkled and her smile downturned. She huffed at herself and returned to her desk, the soft snores of the woman on the bed lost in the sound of ruffling papers. 

From underneath one of the nearby stacks she slipped a different blueprint. This one had the rough outline of Elastigirl's face, with a pair of goggles strapped around her head. With one smooth move, Evelyn adjusted the curve of the cheekbones to better resemble the figure behind her.


	3. Tide and Shore

In the immediate aftermath of the Everjust crash, the female Deavor had surrendered herself to the authorities. It seemed that even she knew the fight was over.

“The fact that you saved me doesn’t make you right,” Evelyn drawled as she was pushed into the cop car. Now that she was unmasked and back on land, she seemed so small. While her eyes were sad and detached, Evelyn’s eye contact with Mrs. Incredible was unwavering.

“But it does make you alive,” Helen sassed back, still pumped full of adrenaline from their fight on the jet. Helen remembered the feel of Evelyn's fingers on her chin, and the searching look in the Deavor sister’s eyes. It had been so easy for Evelyn to threaten Helen’s life, so easy to throw away weeks of friendship. But even now, Helen couldn’t find that same hatred within herself. 

Violet pointed out that rich people, like the Deavors, get off with a ‘slap on the wrist’ and Winston was quick to change the subject. The silvery threads of his business suit shone in the glow from the sunset, and Helen knew that Violet was right. There wouldn’t be much time in an orange jumpsuit waiting for Evelyn. Winston Deavor kept his cards close to his chest, and it was obvious that he had been picking up the pieces behind his sister for years. Evelyn would be fine.

All in all, Helen had accomplished what she set out to do. Supers were legal again, her children were safe, and she felt connected to her powers in a way that she hadn’t since her glory days. Helen wished that she could live in that contented moment, her family around her and the danger passed. 

But all good things come to an end. The first reality check came on the drive back to the house Winston had loaned them. He asked them to live in his house full time, and work for his companies new Super Protection division. When Robert turned hopeful eyes toward his wife, Helen couldn’t think of a reason to say no. Not for the first time, Helen wondered if she had just played a small part in a much larger Deavor scheme. It was no accident that Winston had an entirely new business venture at the ready for the legalization of Supers. 

The second reality check came in the form of a phone call several days later as Helen was cleaning up the evidence of her children’s breakfast. Somehow, Dash had managed to flick his Fiber O’s not only on the ceiling, but inside the microwave. Bob picked up his cellphone and an instant smile spread across his face. 

“Mirage is at the airport,” there was an audible bounce to the Superhero’s voice. 

The kids were at school, and all of Helen’s things had already been moved to the larger master bedroom, “Are you headed to pick her up?”

Robert nodded, “Yeah, are you still okay with her staying here? She could get a hotel for a couple days….”

“No. It's better to bring her here so she can get settled, and we can discuss what to tell the children.” 

Robert just shrugged and grabbed the keys to the new Incredible, latest in a long string of gifts from Winston Deavor. 

After the door closed behind him, Helen slid down the wall to sit on the floor. Now that the time was upon them, she was less and less confident in their plan. What the hell was she going to tell the kids. Was it better to lie to them, and explain the truth to them when they were old enough to understand? Should she and Bob just get divorced, and make this entire situation a little more nuclear? It was impossible to make the right decision here. 

_‘Evelyn would just tell them the truth.’_

Helen sat straight up. That thought was unexpected. She had of course thought about Evelyn Deavor, how could she not, but wasn’t it weird to take parental advice from the woman who almost killed her kids? On the other hand, she didn't really have any friends. Living in secret and moving every few years, it had become harder to make worthwhile friendships. 

It would be several hours before Bob and Mirage managed to tear themselves apart and come back to the house, so she had plenty of time. Helen finished the work cell phone that Winston’s Super Protection Division had issued her and dialed a number she had considered calling many times before. 

As the line rang, Helen ran dozens of scenarios through her head. It was very possible that Evelyn would refuse to talk to her, or be unnecessarily cruel. The younger Deavor was excellent at getting right to the center of people's emotions and intentions. It was a skill she had certainly exercised on Helen, both during their friendship and their battles. 

“New Urbem Correctional Facility, how may I direct your call?” a bored woman's voice answered the phone.

“Hello, yes, this is Elastigirl. I was calling to ask if Evel-- I mean Ms. Deavor has phone privileges or maybe visiting hours--”

The woman cut Helen off before she could even finish, “Screenslaver will not be allowed outside calls or visits for the duration of her incarceration.” 

It was obvious from her voice that people had been calling to ask about the famed villain. Likely dozens of reporters in addition to the normal curious superfan. 

Helen knew that the Deavor defense team had taken a steep plea bargain, without the media circus of a trial, but the exact terms of the deal were unknown to the general public. 

“But I thought--”

Once again the voice cut her off, “I am unable to provide any more information on this matter. Have a pleasant day ‘Elastigirl’.” The line went dead. 

Helen looked down at the phone in shock. Could the government even do that? Keep people in prison with zero contact to the world? It must be a security measure to ensure Evelyn couldn't hypnotize over the phone. Leave it to Screenslaver to make tech devices from behind bars. 

Helen flushed, _'It was stupid to call her anyway. What's wrong with me?'_

She poured herself a glass of wine and sat down at the kitchen bad. Helen would have to navigate this mess on her own, there was no one to swoop in and save the Super now. 

~*~

Five years had passed since Evelyn had last seen a real cup of tea, let alone tasted one. She had always liked this cozy little place downtown, and had been going here since grad school. They had some of the finest South Continent roasts in the city. It didn’t hurt at all that the main barista was a cute brunette. Evelyn sat across from her brother at a tiny cafe table, the clothes Winston had bought for her hung off her skeletal form. Of course, her brother had been allowed to see her in prison, but she seemed skeletal out here against the colourful back-drop of real life. 

“You look terrible.”

Evelyn scoffed, “Thanks Win, it’s not like I spent the last five years in a ski resort.”

Winston studied his sister, the touch of grey beginning at his temples paired well with the expensive watch on his wrist. A watch he kept checking. 

“Please. I paid for the best possible prison experience money could buy. Private holdings, minimal security, four meals a day,” he scanned over her gaunt features, “not that you’ve been eating them.” 

Sitting here, it struck the older Deavor that his sister had lost her fire over the past five years. Her rage had been inside her since they were little, but really taken shape after their parent’s death, and ebbed after her failed coup. Without that bravado and anger, the woman in front of his was softer and more sedate. She wasn’t quite a different person, but a hollowed out version of the Evelyn he once knew. 

Evelyn skirted his eye contact, “Yes, and now I’ll be paying you back.” 

Shaking himself out of wandering thoughts, Winston gave one of his charming smiles, but his sister knew him well enough to know it was the self-satisfied grin of a shark. 

"Technically, you still own half the company."

He, or rather DevTech, had made a very lucrative deal with the government. Evelyn would get out after five years, if she went to work on the new Superhero defense initiative that their company was spearheading. There were limitations of course, she had to prove that she could keep her nose clean in prison. And she had, for five long years. Even now, her fingers itched to touch the expensive holo watch on her brothers wrist, as it sat there glinting and taunting her. Evelyn wanted to rip it apart and live inside its circuitry. 

She must have been quiet a little too long, because Winston went on speaking,“Well, dear sister, since you can’t stay in the penthouse, I’ve worked out a little place for you to stay.” 

Evelyn narrowed her eyes, “Where?”

Winston got up and grabbed his tea, which he had barely sipped, “Come on, it’s right around the corner!”

As they left the cafe, Winston's cup went straight into the trash. 

The siblings trudged down the block, chilly air slicing right through the heavy sweater Winston had brought for Evelyn. This charade explained why Winston had brought them to one of Evelyn’s favorite tea bars instead of out to a fancy dinner. He wanted someplace close to her new apartment. Evelyn smirked to herself. Everything Winston did was for a reason. 

They stopped in front of an older building, the red brick dulled with time and exposure to the elements. On the ground floor was a new-age electronics shop, with the latest holotechs and virtual reality equipment prominently displayed in the window. The white and silver shine of tech contrasted the building with intentionality. Above that, the building had two more floors, with an indoor staircase leading up to them. 

Winston rocked back and forth on his heels, patent leather shoes out of place on the pavement, as be rubbed his leather gloved hands together, “Well? What do you think?”

“What am I supposed to think?”

“We haven’t been inside yet, so not a lot I suppose. But isn’t it great? It’s near all the little shops you like to go, and a ten minute walk from the tower!”

Evelyn looked into the expectant face of her brother, smiled a lopsided smile, and Winston saw a glimmer of life in her steely eyes, “Well are you gonna show me around?” 

She hadn’t seen her brother look so happy in years. He dragged her up the stairs and unlocked the door. What she had thought was two floors was actually more of a split-level studio situation. The downstairs on the second floor had a furnished living room and kitchen in an open floor plan, with the tall windows letting in an excess amount of natural light. Up a metal staircase was the third floor loft overseeing the comfortable living room. The lot was also furnished, with a big bed, workspace, and a large bathroom. 

It was obvious that a design and construction team spent months redesigning the space for her use. Winston himself might even have had a hand in the process, as there was a fully furnished tool cabinet on the first floor and several stylistic choices reflecting her own personality. Though her brother tried to sell the place as a recent acquisition, it was increasingly obvious that he had been preparing for her return.

“Now, as you know, I can’t give you unrestricted access to tools and tech like you would have at DevTech. The government has access to your electrical systems to make sure that you aren’t using a suspicious amount of energy. The phone is tapped, and someone will either be listening in or recording at all times.”

Winston ran a hand through his hair, obviously uncomfortable, before continuing, “And you already know that you’re curfewed from midnight to 7am.” 

Wanting to make her brother feel more at ease, Evelyn just shrugged, “Anything big I can work on at the office. After five years, I’m not planning to bring work home with me as much anymore. Besides, government jobs are never that interesting anyway.” 

Winston set a hand on his sister’s shoulder, “I got them to not put cameras in here, and to loosen up the security. But if you mess this up…..Livy, I won’t be able to help you.”

“I know Win. And I appreciate it. I’m working on it. Therapy and all that,” tears stung at her eyes and she swiped them away angrily.

The two siblings shared a short hug, and Evelyn breathed her first sigh of relief in over a decade. Maybe she really could make this work. She didn’t have to like supers, but she could tolerate them long enough to get her work done. Together with DevTech, she could help make sure Supers were better trained with better equipment, and that the system wouldn’t rely on heroes alone.

She could do this. 

~*~ 

Helen jolted upright in bed, sweat rolling in beads down her back. The white linen sheets were twisted around her waist, which was slightly longer and flatter than what was totally natural. Taking deep gulps of air, she struggled to steady her racing heart beat. Every shadow in the room was a lurking figure, and even the thin slices of moonlight through the slats in her blinds were bullet trials. Slowly but surely, she focused her breathing. It was only a dream. 

She knew from experience that her body wouldn’t let her go right back to sleep after a nightmare. Her mind would race and she would just end up lying awake in bed for hours. It was better to get a drink and maybe watch a little television before laying back down. 

Carefully untwisting her torso, which had somehow ended up wrapped counterclockwise to her hips, Helen slid her feet to the floor. It was cold to the touch, and she felt around for her slippers before standing all the way up. Wincing, the Super did a few stretches to release the tension in her neck and back. Plodding toward the door, she briefly considered flattening herself out and under the door in order to be a little more silent. But that would mean leaving her slippers behind and laying her entire body against the cold floor. No thank you. 

Creeping as quietly as possible, Helen passed through the living room and checked the clock. It was almost seven, so it would start to get light very soon. 

Mirage was already in the kitchen, sipping her first cup of coffee for the day. She smiled lightly at Helen, eyebrow raised at her tousled hair and dark circles. 

“Out late?” Mirage said with a playful lilt. 

“Yeah, on call. But I had another nightmare,” Helen opened the door and got out a bottle of orange juice, not really looking at the other woman. 

The two of them had formed some kind of a friendship, mostly bourne from sharing the same space and family for the last five years. Helen had been extremely resistant in the beginning, going out of her way to ensure that they never interacted. Mirage worked hard to show Helen that she could be trusted. It also helped that all three kids had come to adore her. 

Mirage raised an eyebrow, but her voice was gently, “The one about Gale?”

Helen stiffened, “No actually,” she closed the fridge and leaned against the counter, “This was about Evelyn Deavor.”

The two women had spent many mornings like this, in quiet companionship as the rest of the household slept. So many mornings dreams of Stratogale’s death woke Helen that eventually she had confided in Mirage, with the promise never to tell Bob or the kids. 

“Evelyn Deavor? Winston’s sister?”

Upon moving in to the Parr’s residence, even Mirage had taken up a position at DevTech. She claimed that it gave her something to do during the day, but Helen knew that the silver haired woman used the position to keep an eye on Mr. Incredible. Helen didn’t blame her. 

“Yeah, Win’s sister,” Helen said simply. There were still some things she chose not to share with her husbands lover. 

“I would have nightmares too, if someone who tried to kill me was getting released,” Mirage cringed into her coffee mug. The DevTech logo had started to glint in the sunlight coming through the kitchen window. 

“No its not---wait what? Evelyn is getting released?” 

“It seems Evelyn Deavor’s five years were up. She got released on Monday,” Mirage noted the pink tinge to Helen’s cheeks, “Its in this week’s paper.” 

As Helen reached for the newspaper laying next to Mirage on the counter, she could hear the heavy steps of her teenage son coming down the stairs. At fifteen, Dash had finally begun to grow into his legs. Squinting, he came into the kitchen and started a bowl of cereal. 

“Hey Mom, hey Mirage.” 

As Dash snuck a drink straight from the milk carton, Helen didn’t even look up from the paper, “Dashiell Robert Parr, you use a bowl right now or so help me, you can start buying your own cereal.” 

Mirage’s laugh tinkled in the early morning air, and Dash dramatically kissed his mothers cheek in way of apology. Helen was too absorbed in the article on Evelyn to listen much to the conversation after that. For the rest of the day, she floated around in a daze. She would ask Winston for Evelyn’s address and see if she could visit. After five long years, it was time to go see Screenslaver. 

~*~

Evelyn was neck deep in the bath when there was a knock at the door. If this had been her previous home, she would pull up the doorbell cam on a techpad and decide if the visitor was worth getting dressed. But this apartment wasn’t equipped with any cameras, at least, none that she had control over. And besides, her digital presence was severely stunted. She was allowed to have a desktop computer and a television, but not much else. Even her toaster was an old-fashioned manual model. 

Pulling herself out of the water, she shimmied into a pair of cashmere lounge pants and pulled a white dress shirt over her head. Whoever it was, there was no way she was putting a bra on for them.

She took her time, half hoping that the person would give up and leave. Luck was not on her side, and she heard another strong knock. 

“Just a minute! Can’t a girl--” Evelyn pulled the door open, almost bumping noses with the figure on the other side, “--have a nice...bath.”

Standing just inches away in a long overcoat with the large ‘E’ of her super suit peeking out at the collar, was Elastigirl. 

“Hello Evelyn,” Elastigirl reached a hand up to adjust a black mask, the other deep in her pocket.

Evelyn didn’t move from the doorway, one hand still on the handle. 

Elastigirl gestured at the apartment, “Are you going to invite me in?”

Evelyn straightened to lean against the door frame, trying a little too hard to seem cool and relaxed. Did normal people cross their ankles? 

“Are you even allowed to be here, Mrs. Incredible?”

“I called Winston when I heard you were out,” the Super shrugged, “He said he would tell you I was coming.” 

‘Damn him,’ Evelyn thought to herself, ‘What game could Win possibly be playing?’ Evelyn turned around, leaving the door open for Elastigirl to follow, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll tie you to another chair?”

“I heard that they’ve got you on a pretty short leash these days….Screenslaver.”

Evelyn bristled at the name and made a beeline for the fridge. She would need a drink to get through this apparent social call, “It’s a good thing that you’re not worth the effort.”

The Super just scoffed and watched as the barefoot Evelyn poured a glass of wine. It was clear that the Deavor sister had just gotten out of the bathroom, and her wet hair was turning the back of her white shirt opaque. Where the fabric clung to her back, Elastigirl could see the outline of each vertebrae. 

It was clear that Evelyn was just going to leave her standing in the entryway, a classic Deavor powerplay, so Elastigirl took the liberty to lay her coat on the nearest chairback, “Are you supposed to be drinking on probation?”

Evelyn hoisted herself up onto the countertop and took a long swig, “It’s not my fault that your self-righteous demeanor drives me to drink,” the brunette sat the glass delicately on the counter next to her, “but I doubt you came here just to see if I was self-medicating.” 

The female Deavor’s constant inability to sit in a proper chair irked Helen to no end, but the slight bounce of Evelyn’s breasts as she lifted herself onto the counter almost made up for it. However, it was worrying that the action took far more effort than it would have five years ago. As the sun bled through the fabric, Elastigirl could see that Evelyn’s once toned arms were rod-thin. 

Respecting the distance that Evelyn so clearly established, the Super eased herself into an armchair and crossed her legs, “No, it’s not.”

That response was so tender that Evelyn’s mouth went dry. She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin in the valley between her bony knee caps. Now it was Elastigirl's turn to avoid eye contact. 

“Why are you here, Mrs. Incredible?”

“Please, don’t call me that.”

Evelyn smirked, gleeful that she seemed to have struck a nerve, “Why? Don’t like to admit that your husband owns you? Or are things not so ‘Incredible’ at home?”

Elastigirl shot her a dirty look, “Harr. Harr. No. I just prefer Elastigirl.”

Evelyn cocked her head, “Interesting. Even now, you won’t tell me your real name. After everything we’ve been through.”

That sarcastic comment tipped the Super over the edge, and her ears were starting to turning brighter red than her hair. 

“How you do it? How could you put everyone, your own brother, my KIDS in danger like that? Don’t you care about any of them? It doesn’t make sense that you would risk the life of the only family you had left.” 

The words cut Evelyn deeper than she would like to admit, but she snarked back, “Please. I don’t care about you or your little brats. You were all just a means to an end. Even my puppy-lovey brother. Supers are more dangerous that I could ever be! So didn’t matter. None of you mattered.”

Evelyn snatched up her wine glass and drained the rest in one long go, _‘Liar liar,’_ nagged some part of her brain. Another person might have called it a conscious, _‘You never wanted those kids to get hurt.’_

“I don’t believe you,” Elastigirl retorted, determination shining in her eyes. 

“Believe what you want, Superhero. You WANT to see the good in everyone, and it blinds you from the truth! Sometimes people are just bad.”

Elastigirl was quiet for a while, and Evelyn counted almost twenty heartbeats rushing in her ears, _‘When was the last time my heart raced like this?’_

“You’re right. I didn’t want to believe that you could hurt my family like that. I didn’t want to believe you could hurt ME like that,” the Superheroine’s voice quivered, and Evelyn felt like she was going to throw up. 

“For what it’s worth ...I'm sorry. I’m especially sorry about your kids,” Evelyn wrapped around her knees again and stared out of the big arch windows. This felt like a conversation that should be happening in a parked car or a city bench at night, not on a Wednesday at two in the afternoon. 

“Are you serious?” 

Evelyn had expected the Super to be angry, but instead she just sounded surprised, “Yeah. It's been five years. Part of my program in prison was this therapy thing. At first I was kind of a shit head. I cycled through at least three phycologists. But then there was one who just wouldn’t give up.”

The brunette chucked a little before continuing, “That rat bastard made me open up. Flush out some of the emotional baggage. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still no fan of Superheros. I still hate them for what happened to my parents. But apparently your husband spilled all the beans about that guy, Syndrome? Gazerbeam and Fironic were either on Syndrome’s island, or dead already, when my father was killed. Crazy right? It wasn’t even a Super’s fault, it was a regular person. Someone with fancy toys playing God,” Evelyn glanced over at Elastigirl, “Sound like someone you know?”

The redhead didn’t say anything, just stared at Evelyn. Even she hadn’t put together the timeline of the disappearances and Syndrom’s twisted experiments with the tragedy of the Deavor’s parents. 

“I’m sorry, Evelyn,” Elastigirl moved from her seat to stand in front of Evelyn. One hand reached out as if to touch the smaller woman’s face, but pulled back at the last moment. 

“Don’t apologize to me. I did what I did, and now I’m paying for it.”

Something in Evelyn’s voice made the Super think that the price was more than just the loss of her freedom. 

Evelyn relaxed a little and gestured to her fridge, “If you want a drink, please feel free.”

“Nah. I’m driving.”

The brunette perked up, “Elasticycle?”

“Family car,” Elastigirl threw her thumb over her shoulder at the trench coat, “I’m picking Jack-Jack up from kindergarten at three thirty.” 

“They’re so old now. Violet must be, what? In college? The family that can’t be kept down.”

“Yeah. I’m pretty proud of them,” Elastigirl winced a little, “But you weren’t far off earlier. Bob and I aren’t…..together. Anymore.” 

Evelyn’s eyes went wide, “What?! But I saw that you’re all still crime fighting together. You were on the news yesterday in your garish matching suits.” 

“Yeah, we do, mostly to train the boys. I do most of my hard stuff alone. As you can see, I prefer the suits your brothers geeks make for me.” 

Evelyn reached out a hand to trace the prominent ‘E’ offset over Elastigirl's heart, the red symbol bold against a silver fabric. Her response was an absent minded murmur, “I like the ones I made for you better.” 

From the living room, a tinkling alarm sounded and Elastigirl took a sharp breath. As she stepped away to grab her cellphone and silence the alarm, Evelyn quickly retracted her fingers. 

_‘What the hell am I doing?’_ the brunette thought to herself. 

The Super ran a hand through her hair, thoughts frazzled, and turned back to Evelyn, “I’m sorry, I have to go.”

“Yeah of course,” Evelyn hopped down off the counter to open the front door. She had to catch herself before automatically saying something stupid like ‘thanks for stopping by’.

“Maybe we can get together sometime. I can fill you in?”

Evelyn quirked one side of her mouth but didn’t make eye contact, “Yeah sure.”

The Super could tell by the look on her face that the Deavor sister thought that she would never hear from Elastigirl again. And why should she? As far as Evelyn knew, this was just a Superhero checking out a possible threat. 

“How about Saturday? You choose the place,” the Super reached into her coat for a pen. Unfortunately, there was no paper to be found. 

On instinct, a gloved hand reached out to grab Evelyns and jotted a phone number in black ink on the back. 

Satisfied, the super looked into Evelyn’s eyes, “Here, give me a call on Friday and we can hammer out the details.”

Evelyn didn’t move, turned to solid stone by the Super’s firm grasp. Maybe this was a new superpower, making hearts race at a hundred miles an hour. She just managed to nod, and Elastigirl quickly left the apartment, closing the heavy door behind her. Distantly, Evelyn could hear boot steps on the stairs, and it sounded as if the Super were taking them at least three at a time. 

The brunette looked down at her hand and smiled to herself. Next to the last digit of the phone number was a tiny black heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone and thank you for your patience! I love feedback, and I'm sure that after this chapter there will be a lot of it! Some of you have already commented on the way that I play with the characters and reform them for the purposes of this fic, and I explore that even more in this chapter. Let me know what you think in the comments! 
> 
> Please keep in mind that my work is un-beta'ed and likely to be minorly edited over the next several days!


	4. Wishing on Comets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was typed quickly and will likely be edited in the next couple days! Thank you to all of my readers who leave comments! You guys keep me passionate about, and motivated for, this fic!

That first Saturday afternoon had turned into three more, and a few Wednesday brunches in between. For each trip, Helen had ditched the mask and suit for plain clothes. Helen told herself that it would have been suspicious for a superheroine to be seen having lunch with a known criminal. Being without her mask made her nervous, but Evelyn had never made a comment about her identity. On those afternoons, Helen could almost imagine that they were two old friends out for brunch, that there was no unwritten history between them. 

For the first time, the two women were meeting on a Friday night. Evelyn had invited her out to an exhibition on modern “techno-art”. The superheroine was not entirely sure what that meant, but Evelyn had sounded so excited on the phone that she could hardly refuse. 

The Super parked her car outside Evelyn’s apartment, and the Deavor sister sauntered down the stairs to meet her. As part of her parole terms, Evelyn couldn’t own a car, so the two would be walking to the gallery. 

It turned out that techno-art consisted of a gallery full of video screens. Which was not at all what Helen had been expecting. Most of the art pieces were too large to be viewed in a conventional gallery, like a smart home with entirely simulated walls or an electronic shark the size of a freight train.

The surprising thing was how fascinating it all really was. There was practically no one in the exhibit, so Evelyn could lead the Super excitedly from one screen to the next while babbling at full volume. After three glasses of free wine, the waiter had left the entire bottle out for them. 

“Now what does this piece mean?” the redheaded Super teased. It turned out that Evelyn knew most of the artists, and had gone to college with many of them, so she knew a thousand and one interesting tidbits. 

The particular piece she was referring too was some kind of strange windmill, with each blade a different shape and color. It didn’t seem very practical, and Elastigirl was having a difficult time imagining exactly what the use could be. She glanced over at Evelyn, and the tip of the shorter woman's nose had begun to turn red. 

“Mmm yes Marie Weston. Too much money and not enough vision.”

The super jolted in surprise, “Marie Weston? The head of the AgGro corporation?” 

Evelyn smirked and poured herself a new glass, “When I knew her she was just the heir to the family fortune. Her daddy paid for the engineering building at Capital City University, so guess who got a full scholarship.” 

“Nepotism does make the world go ‘round,” the Super smirked at Evelyn as the younger woman filled her glass as well. 

“Exactly! This is something she designed in grad school, a dyro-solar-windmill. Essentially it’s designed with solar panels, hydroelectric engines, and solar blades all at once.” 

Helen examined the video again, “It doesn’t seem very aerodynamic?”

Evelyn snorted, “It’s not! The damn thing was so poorly designed that it ELECTROCUTED the project manager on the first day of field testing!” She gestured wildly with her right hand and wine splashed out of her glass and onto the carpet. 

The Super laughed loudly, partly at the story but mostly at the antics of her wine-drunk companion. 

The Deavor sister grumbled into her glass, “That woman designs machines just like she fucks….with absolutely no focus.”

“Wait, you and Marine Weston….?”

“Were a thing? Did the dirty? Fucked around?” Evelyn chuckled, her hand reaching up to run her fingers through her hair and finding them to be sticky with wine, “No, yes, and yes.”

Helen raised her eyebrows, “When? Isn’t she a lot older than you?”

“During her first PHD program, and my second masters program. Actually she was finishing the design for this project during that time. Did you know she wanted to name the thing ‘Project Mill’? What a stupid thing to call a government-subsidized, multi-billion dollar project.” Evelyn worked to bring the conversation back around to the exhibit, but Helen was either too drunk to notice or too curious to care. 

“I didn’t even know you were into women.” Helen reached out an elastic arm to sit her drink down on a side table, her pleasant buzz fading with each thump of her heartbeat. The fact that she didn’t check to see if anyone was around to see the action was testament to how inebriated she must be. 

“Am.”

“Am what?” 

Evelyn lifted her chin and crossed her arms, looking more like her brother than ever in that moment, “I am into women. As in, I am currently into women.”

In the light of the TV screens, Evelyn's steely eyes were brighter than ever. 

Helen couldn’t think of anything to say, so she said the first thing that came to mind, “Me too.”

The younger woman's laugh could have lit up a city, “I know, Elastigirl. You told me about Stratogale, remember?”

“Oh. Yes.” and just like that Helen remembered who she was talking to, and the context in which the two of them had had that conversation. Just a few nights before Screenslaver tried to kill everyone she loved. Before Evelyn tried to kill everyone she loved. The memory hit like a hover train at 115 miles and hour, and the Super physically cringed.

“....Elastigirl?” 

Helen smiled uneasily, “I’m fine.”

Evelyn let out a puff of air and slid down the wall until she was sitting with her legs splayed on the floor, “Thinking about the old days?”

The Super hummed non-committedly, and a silence settled between them. She stood awkwardly in front of Evelyn while the younger woman continued to sip on her wine from the floor. Helen was just about to suggest they leave, when Evelyn spoke up. 

“You never did tell me what's going on with you and Mr. Incredible.” 

Of all the things she could have expected out of Evelyn's mouth, this was not one of them. 

“You don’t want to hear about Bob and me.” 

Evelyn quirked an eyebrow, “Oh but I do. How else can I know all the best ways to annoy you?”

The Super chuckled and looked around to ensure there was no security guard coming to kick them out before sliding down to sit beside the drunken Deavor. She kicked off her heels and straightened her skirt, both of which looked out of place next to Evelyn’s characteristic dress pants and ballet flats. 

“Essentially he fell in love with someone else.”

“That rat bastard,” Evelyn straightened up and her cheeks turned even more red with anger. 

Helen chucked, “This was almost six years ago, and he told me immediately. Let’s just say the woman was a….family friend. After everything that happened, we decided that the kids needed us both.” 

“But you weren’t happy,” Evelyn turned the full force of her eyes on Helen's face, searching for any signs of discomfort. 

“No. So we decided not to get a divorce, and his lover moved in with us.” 

“Oh. So do you three…?” It was obvious that Evelyn was trying very hard not to offend her. 

“Do the dirty? Fuck around?” Evelyn chuckled at having her own words turned against her, but didn’t stop staring, “No. They have their own bedroom, and I have mine. Your brother's house is huge, so we can pretty much avoid each other. The kids adore her. So it’s getting easier.” The super shrugged, one strap of her maroon dress sliding down her shoulder. 

“Are you ever planning on getting a divorce?”

Helen took a deep breath, “Maybe eventually, when we are both old enough to be out of the spotlight. I don’t want to do super hero work for forever, but I really haven’t thought that far ahead. I’ve only ever been a house-wife or a crime fighting vigilante. I don’t know how to just be ME.”

“What did you do before you met Mr. Incredible?” 

“Mechanic work, odd jobs here and there. My parents couldn’t afford to send me to college, but I did the best I could and made it through undergrad. I guess I would like to go back to school.”

Evelyn tilted her head like a thoughtful puppy, “If you went to work for DevTech, we could pay for your degree.” 

“Thanks for the offer, and I might take you up on it, but I’m not sure I agree with everything your brother’s company is doing.” 

Evelyn gestured vaguely, “Just something to think about. The government always needs more input from Supers, and any number of companies would be lucky to have you work with them,” she was quiet for a beat, like she was considering her words carefully, “You have options. You don’t have to stay with him.” 

The Super smiled at her kindly, gratitude shining in her eyes. Helen reached out a hand to touch Evelyn’s shoulder, and suddenly the younger woman realized just how close they were. She could feel the excessive heat of the Super’s curvy form beside her, a byproduct of a super-active metabolism. 

Helen’s hand moved up to Evelyn's cheek, stroking it once carefully. She could feel the fine hairs on Evelyn’s face and Helen felt a curious sensation like her cells stretching to accommodate. Like very skin was trying to feel the most of Evelyn that she could. 

At that moment, it felt natural that the two of them should lean in and brush their lips against each other. The Super was the first to bridge the gap between them. She told herself that it was due to an innate desire to feel more of Evelyn underneath her skin. It was biology. 

Evelyn, on the other hand, felt like this moment was where they had been heading since the first moment they met. Her foray into villain-hood, and the five years they spent apart, had just been a distraction from her true purpose. It was inevitable. 

Before her brain could catch up to the fact that she had actually kissed Evelyn Deavor, the Super had a hand under her white dress shirt. Helen wanted her so bad, she unnaturally extended her wrist to stroke across Evelyn’s ribcage. 

The younger woman let her wine glass topple, and she could feel the wetness under her fingertips where it soaked into the carpet. 

“We’ve gotta get out of here before we get kicked out,” Evelyn gasped as the Super bit down on the long column of her neck.

“I don’t care. You smell too good,” it was such an Elastigirl thing to say that Evelyn melted. 

It took several minutes, but they finally made it out the door and onto the sidewalk. The serving staff did not seem sad to see them go. In the crisp evening air, Evelyn was more rosy than ever before. Her dress shirt was almost halfway unbuttoned, and she drew the Super close to her body and kissed her again. 

Unnoticed by the two women, there was a subtle flash of light from the bushes.

“Take me home, Helen.”

Helen froze in her arms, and it took Evelyn a few beats to notice, “Is everything okay?”

“What did you call me?” Helen pulled away and held Evelyn at arms length. 

All of a sudden the younger woman felt like a chided child. In her tipsy state, she struggled to remember what exactly she had said to make her companion upset. She had tried so hard to be on her best behavior. 

“I’m sorry I said the wrong thing. Can we go back to kissing?” Evelyn reached out to the other woman but she took a super-human step backwards. 

“You called me Helen.”

Evelyn’s eyes widened, “Oh.”

She had never called Elastigirl by her secret identity before, and had even intentionally avoided admitting that she knew it. 

“How long have you known?” the tone in the Super’s voice made it clear that there would be no more touching until she had an answer. 

Evelyn nervously tried to stick her hands in her pockets, but found that this particular pair didn’t have any, “Since before we met.”

“Does Winston know?” 

That question obviously surprised the Deavor sister, “What?”

“Does Winston know? Does he know my kids’ identities?”

“I don’t--”

The super was becoming irate, and took several steps toward Evelyn until she was right in her face, “Is my FAMILY safe, Evelyn?!”

Suddenly Elastigirl was looming above her, imposing and terrifying. Unintentionally, Evelyn's own tone and attitude rose to match her. 

“He doesn’t know anything! He didn’t want to know! Winston thought it was safer if no one knew.” 

Elastigirl went quiet, shrinking down to something more akin to her normal size, “But you know.”

Evelyn didn’t say anything.

“You couldn’t leave well enough alone. There was something private and you just had to own it for yourself, or you weren’t satisfied.”

Evelyn didn’t even try to defend herself. She knew that Helen was right, “I’m so sorry.”

After everything that Screenslaver had tried to take, Elastigirl's safety was just the latest on a long list. 

“Do you know my children’s identity?”

Evelyn took a shaky breath, “I know the true identity of every known person with enhanced abilities.”

Helen chuckled and shook her head, “I can’t do this. I thought I was ready but I’m not.”

The Super turned away and began walking quickly in the other direction. Her enhanced metabolism meant that the effect of her four glasses of wine was already worn off. Unfortunately the same could not be said for Evelyn. 

“He-- Elastigirl! Wait!” She tripped as she tried to follow the Super, and threw her hand out to catch her. A piece of something sharp cut across her palm, and several shards of glass sunk in, “Fuck shit!”

By the time she stood up, Helen was gone. It took several tries but she got her phone out and called Winston. It was getting close to her curfew and she was in no state to walk home alone. He answered on the first ring. 

“Livy? Are you okay?”

Evelyn hiccuped into the phone, and for the first time she realised that she was crying, “I fucked up, Win. She’s gone” 

~*~

On the car ride back to her apartment, Evelyn refused to tell Winston why she called him at 10 pm to pick her up in the art district. She hadn’t even told him who she was out with. 

“Evelyn you can’t do things like this! If you violate your parole, then the entire contract is at risk!”

“I know Win.”

“Do you even think about the things that you do and how they affect other people? What were you thinking!”

His pajama pants were on backwards, and his slippers were kicked off on the floorboard. He hadn’t sent a driver, and had even driven himself, which probably meant that he was worried about someone seeing her like this. Evelyn hadn’t seen him behind the wheel of his own car in ten years or more. Even before the trial, the billionaire Deavor orphans had been the center of media attention.

The car ride was silent for several long minutes, just the latest girl-band song humming on the radio. 

“Are you okay, Livy?” Winston’s voice had become soft. 

Evelyn took a deep breath, “I upset someone that I really care about.” 

Winston snorted, “Oh, I’m so surprised.” 

Evelyn shot him a scathing look, “I’m trying to be fucking serious here.”

“I mean Jesus Evelyn! You push away everyone who gets close to you! You get so obsessed with finding something wrong with them. There was that girl from the theatre who didn’t like to read and you obsessed over it for months.” 

“That's not true! We didn’t have any chemistry!”

Winston looked over at her, the same face he had made when he was a little kid and she had gotten caught doing something naughty, even after he had told her not to do it. In her mind, and once while drunk, Evelyn called it his Smug 1.0 look. 

“You never even let her get the chemicals out of the cabinet, Livy.” 

Evelyn looked out the window, watching as the art district shifted to downtown neighborhoods. If she ever saw Helen again, she would fix this. She had to.

~*~

When Helen made it home that night, it was well after two in the morning. She had very little memory of how she spent the last several hours. She only knew that she didn’t want to face her family at home. The only person awake in the dark house was Mirage, who sat under a lamp in the communal living area. She looked up and her slim glasses slipped down her nose. 

“Hey! I was worried about you.”

As soon as Helen looked into her concerned eyes, she broke down in tears. The Super collapsed onto her knees in front of her husband's lover and cried into her lap. Mirage just stroked her hair and told her that everything would be okay. Helen hoped that she was right. 

Eventually they would talk about the terror of almost losing her children, and the woman that she didn’t want to love being in love with.


End file.
